Salem Basketball traveled to take on NC Wesleyan for their second matchup of the season, falling 72-46.
The Spirits started out slow in quarter one, struggling to find their offense. The points they were able to secure came from a Cristina Battistini layup and a Lauren Ringwood jumper. Salem was working hard defensively, with both Amy Pedroza and Catherine Jordan Cano snagging steals.
Quarter two brought improvements for the Spirits, holding the Bishops to only five points in the first five minutes, while putting up three of their own. Nicole Hester kept the ball rolling for Salem, hitting a free throw then grabbing a steal on the other end. That steal resulted in a strong put back layup from Keniya Waring just a few moments later. Ringwood closed out the quarter strong, scoring in the paint and sinking both free throws.
Salem made some great adjustments coming out of halftime, putting up their strongest performance offensively and out-scoring the Bishops 20-9. After a competitive first three minutes, the Spirits went on a 12-point run, their most dominant stretch of the contest. This was capitalized by a huge and-one from Ringwood, adding three more points on her way to being Salem's leading scorer. Free throws were a big story in this quarter, with the Spirits shooting a whopping 91% from the line.
Hester opened the scoring in quarter four, snagging an offensive rebound and securing the second-chance bucket. Triana Smallwood also got on the board this quarter, grabbing a steal to create a scoring opportunity. Salem's final points of the night came from Battistini, knocking down two free throws and connecting with Pedroza to nail a jumper. Despite the Spirit's stronger second half performance, NCW had built too strong of a lead and ultimately prevailed.
Tonight's stat leaders were Lauren Ringwood with 14 points and Amy Pedroza with four steals and four assists. Nicole Hester secured 11 rebounds, which combined with 11 points provided another double-double.
The Spirits will next be in action on Tuesday February 3rd where they host Mary Baldwin at 6pm.
